


Who Let The Dogs Out?

by audbooh



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Animal Shelters, Dogs, F/M, Fluff, Humour, World Between Worlds Holiday Cookie Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:41:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28470321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/audbooh/pseuds/audbooh
Summary: Ben starts volunteering at an animal shelter, and Rey thinks it's hilarious to pair him with the tiniest dogs to walk.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 7
Kudos: 66
Collections: World Between Worlds Holiday Cookie Exchange 2020





	Who Let The Dogs Out?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Trish47](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trish47/gifts).



Typically, the people who volunteered at Takodana’s Animal Shelter around Christmas fit into were easy for Rey to spot. They were teenagers trying to get school credit, bored elders, and animal lovers. Rey fell into the latter category, and also had the perk of being the owner’s adopted daughter. She had seen volunteers come and go, but they almost never strayed from the neat little boxes she put them in.

The man before her, Ben Solo according to his paperwork, did not fit into any of the categories. With a black dress shirt rolled up to his elbows and neatly pressed slacks, he looked more like a businessman, someone who belonged in a cubicle. He was tall, broad-chested, and had an intense look on his face with his eyebrows furrowed and jaw clenched. Rey couldn’t imagine him with any sort of small beings, neither babies nor dogs, and yet, here he was, hands in his pockets and eyes darting around.

“Your paperwork looks all good,” Rey said, forcing herself to look Mr Solo in the eye. He met her gaze, nodding as he swallowed. “If it’s okay, do you mind starting tomorrow?” She couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped her at the look of relief that passed over his face. “We have a bit of a staffing problem.”

“I can start tomorrow,” he said, voice deep and low. Rey shivered a bit. Was it cold in here? She nodded, then gave Ben Solo her best customer service smile.

“Great! We’ll see you at four.” 

Rey watched as he walked out, unable to take her eyes off of him.

\---

Since Ben Solo volunteered in the late afternoon, Rey decided he should be the dog walker. They had around ten dogs at the shelter, and even though they got to play in the yard, they still needed the walk. When Ben Solo showed up on the first day, dressed almost the exact same as last time, except with black tennis shoes on, Rey handed him a leash attached to Noodle, a large brown Labrador Retriever whose entire body wagged when he saw a person. 

Ben listened attentively to Rey’s instructions as Noodle thumped his tail against his leg, absentmindedly bending down to scratch Noodle’s head. Noodle panted, his tail wagging faster as Ben scratched behind Noodle’s ears and Rey couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Maybe Ben was good with animals.

When he came back, Rey asked him how it went. His voice was soft as he described the walk, unhooking Noodle’s harness with ease before releasing him back into his kennel. Rey tried to ignore the way her eyes drifted towards his hands. 

The next day that Ben came in, Rey partnered him with a large black super-mutt named Kramer. Kramer had a bum leg and grey in his fur, but he was the sweetest dog Rey had ever met. Ben bent down to scratch Kramer’s chin, his intense expression softening. He looked better like that, Rey decided. 

\---

“Should I pair Ben up with tiny dogs?” Rey asked, sipping her drink. The bar was noisy, crowded, just the way she liked it.

“What?” Poe shouted, peeking over her head to watch at the drunk people dancing a few feet away from them. Finn was bobbing his head to the music next to him, and Rose slid into the seat next to her.

“You know it’s impossible to talk to Poe when he’s here. What’s up?” Rose’s smile was bright, comforting. Rey relaxed, taking another sip of her drink.

“Have you seen the new volunteer? The big guy, with the dark hair?” Rey turned to face Rose, who was furrowing her eyebrows in concentration.

“Oh yeah! I usually pass him in the parking lot. Why… you like him?” Rose elbowed Rey gently, and Rey blushed.

“What, no! I mean, he’s not bad to look at. I mean… stop distracting me!” The two laughed, squeezing each other’s hands.

“It’s just… he seems very lonely. Or… distant, I guess? I wanted to do something, and I was thinking, you know how he’s so tall, right?” Rey asked, hands moving as she talked. Rose gave Rey a knowing smile, and Rey chuckled softly, dipping her head to avoid Rose’s gaze.

“Well, I was thinking about how funny it would be to pair him up with small dogs. Like Thor, or Miki, ya know?” Rey raised her eyebrows, looking at Rose expectantly as she took a sip of her drink. Maybe she was slightly drunk, but the image of Ben Solo with tiny dogs was hilarious to her right now. 

“That… that’s actually pretty funny,” Rose conceded, and Rey laughed happily, elbowing Rose. 

“Isn’t it?”

“You’ll have to send me pictures,” Rose said, watching as her friend’s face softened. Rey was smiling, already thinking of Ben Solo holding a tiny dog in the palm of his hand.

\---

Ben’s eyebrows raised minisculely at the sight of the dog before him. Thor was a short and fat brown Chihuahua with a tendency to hump everything in sight, but when Rey put out her hand to pet him he fell over onto his back. Rey couldn’t help but smile at the sight before her.

“Are you sure? He’s a bit small,” Ben asked, eyes darting from Rey to Thor and then back to Rey. 

“Yeah, you’ll be fine. Just don’t trip on him!” Ben’s eyes widened at the thought, and he tensed up as he slipped the harness onto Thor. He scooped Thor into his arms, body stiff. Rey reached out and placed her hand on Ben’s arm, cheeks turning red.

“Ben,” she said, and he turned to look at her, lips slightly parted and dark eyes pouring over her. Rey’s stomach tightened, and she quickly let go of his arm. “You’ll be okay. You won’t break him.” 

Ben’s gaze darkened slightly, and he turned from Rey. He put Thor back on the ground, gripped the leash so tightly his knuckles turned white, and walked out the door.

\---

During the next few weeks, Ben would come in at four o’clock on the dot, wait patiently for Rey to bring out the dog, and then leave to walk them. The entirety of their interactions consisted of telling Ben the dog’s name and Ben telling Rey that the walk was “good”. There was a tension between them, one Rey couldn’t break through no matter how she tried.

The bell above the door rang, and Rey looked up to see Ben walking through the door, trailed by two white Bichon Frise puppies. Geddy, the bigger of the two, looked up at Rey with big dark eyes, his tail rising at the sight of her. Rey stepped out from behind the counter to see the smaller Bichon, Solo, who smiled and ran over to lick her face as she crouched down.

“So, how was the walk? Did they behave? Did you have fun with your fellow Solo?” Rey looked up at Ben, who had the ghost of a smile on his face. Maybe there was a chance of breaking the tension.

“It was good. They did good,” Ben said, unhooking the harnesses and placing them on the desk. Rey couldn’t take her eyes off of him, off of the way his windswept hair caught the sunlight coming in from the window.

“Do you wanna grab dinner sometime?” The words fell from her mouth, and she bit her lip as she focused back on the puppies in front of her. Silence filled the room, awkward and stilted. 

“Sure. Tomorrow, seven? I’ll pick you up if you want.” Rey glanced up to see Ben, eyes focused on her, hands in his pockets. Her heart skipped a beat, and she was sure she was blushing. 

“...okay,” she said, and then, more firmly, “Yes. Seven.” 

Rey could swear that he smiled, just a little bit. 

**Author's Note:**

> I know all of the dogs mentioned in this fic personally, and the two bichons at the end are actually my dogs! Just a fun fact. Happy Holidays!


End file.
